Travelling from Ireland
I have 4 weeks to spend around christmas/new year and hope to backpack in mexico/central or south america.
I know its not a lot of time but does anyone have any suggested itineraries to get a decent experience??? I haven't booked flights yet.
I would prefer a good mix of sights & culture, good scenery & beaches and maybe an occasional bit of nightlife but will be operating on a tight budget. (prob about $2000 for 4 weeks)
So if anyone has a route/itinerary they can recommend....... please let me know.
Can you also advise on the weather
Thank you in advance
Oisin
Reply to this Hello Oisin 😊
I moved this to the Central America forum.
Hopefully it will get some replies here.
Mel
Reply to this Hi Oisin,
How about doing a loop though mexico, belize and guatemala, plenty of culture and a bit of night life as well and the beaches rock.
You could start flying into Playa del carmen, cancun or guatemala city.
If you start in Guate, i would head to antigua then panajachel and chichi, cross the border to mexico to San chistobal, then the ruins in palanque (el panchan is a great cheap place to stay near the ruins) then to merida and chichenitza (sp!), from there you can go to cancun (good for nightlife if you fancy it, though i prefer to go to Isla Mujeres!) The head downt he coast to Playa, tulum and down to belize, from belize city you can go get the taxi boats out to the cayes, for a bit of beach time. Back in belize city there are buses to San igancio or you can head straight across to guatemala tikal, staying flores is the best bet. from there you can go overland to antigua or livingstone belofre gong back to guate city.
kath
Reply to this Kath,
Thanks this is great.
I was hoping to fly into one location and out of another to allow more time to see other places, but that seems to be very expensive. Will prob have to fly into and out of mexico city/ cancun or guatemala city
I reckon I will stay away from Cancun, unless I need to pass through it. I think I'd prefer the smaller resorts. It will prob save me money too!
What about budget, would $2000 for 4 weeks mean little comfort/ treats?
Is accommodation easy to get on arrival in most places??
Are buses the best way to travel on a budget??
Thanks again for your help
Oisin
Reply to this When I was in Mexico and Guatamala I never prebooked accomodation and never had trouble finding places to stay for the price I wanted.
Same for other countries I have been to in S. America. But these days it is easy to prebook via the internet so maybe that is worth it?? I havent been to C. or S. America for 10 years so cant comment on internet booking or what a budget should be right now.
Yes buses are the best and safest way to get around. They are also inexpensive and run at regular intervals.
Mel
Reply to this Hi Oisin,
Am going to central america for 6 weeks over xmas. I'm planning to spend time in Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Beaches in Nicaragua are supposed to be great, expecially if you want to surf.
I have been to central amercia before, if you are going to Mexico steer clear of Cancun it's over priced and full of american tourists - the cayes of belieze are fab for challing out - especially caye caulker - I'd defo head for there. In terms of mayan stuff I thought Tikal was great
Happy travels
Reply to this how old where u and did u feel it was safe im thinking of going in two and half weeks just looking for good advise ;0)
Reply to this I was in my late 20s. I didnt feel safe in Guatamala but the country was just comming out of a civil war at the time so robberies were frequent.
I think you will be safe enough if you dont wonder around the streets alone at night and keep valuables out of sight.
The main problem is the constant sexual harassment, but that is more annoying than dangerous. Also, it was always verbal. None of them ever tried to touch me against my will.
Reply to this not sure if thats made me wanna go now lol i think lots of girls go on there own dont they ??????
Reply to this Yeah, lots go alone. Luckily there is more to the counties than the crime and sexual harassment, so they are worth going to. :D
Reply to this Thanks Hun made me feel a lil better, what was the best thing u done there, going bck to u talking about internet booking im thinking about booking my first night so at least i know i got somewhere in cancun lol
Reply to this I liked Ecuador a lot because of the scenery. I travelled up from Peru to Quito by bus stopping here and there along the way for a few nights.
Not sure Cancun would be my first choice of places in Mexico to go to. Try San Cristobal de Las Casas. That is worth a visit.
Reply to this Stay away from Cancun! There are much more beautiful parts of Mexico, Cancun is full ot tourists and 5 star hotels - not really a taste of Mexico
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